Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Abagail Gossi in action for the Wildcats on Saturday night.

By Ray Hamill — Nine days between games didn’t affect the Wildcats.

On Saturday night, the Ferndale girls moved within two wins of successfully defending their North Coast Section championship with a comprehensive victory in the Division-6 quarterfinals.

Playing their first game since a semifinal loss to Arcata in the Dick Niclai Tournament, the Wildcats hosted Mendocino and won 57-28 to set up a semifinal showdown against Grace Christian Academy on Wednesday night.

And as the No. 2 seeds in the bracket, Ferndale will host that game.

The Ferndale boys were also in action against Mendocino on Saturday night, but had to travel for their game, and the No. 7 seeds fell to the No. 2 Cardinals 51-41.

The loss ended the season for the Ferndale boys.

The school’s girls team, however, will continue its season as the Cats look to secure a second straight NCS Division-6 crown.

And the long layoff leading up to their playoff opener did not prove to be a problem.

“You know, it’s always tough having a bye in the first round,” Ferndale head coach Chris Ardrey said. “We started slow, but I think overall we did a pretty good job.”

The visiting Cardinals were clearly outmatched and they trailed 26-17 at halftime.

Things would get worse for them after the break, and the host Wildcats, who have been playing good defense for much of the season, held them to just 11 points for the second half.

“I thought our defense was great again,” Ardrey added. “And I thought we moved the ball well.”

Senior Tinnley Pidgeon continued to lead the way for the Cats and scored a game-high 22 points.

But that was just half the story for a player who has been playing some of the best basketball of her young career over the past few weeks.

In addition to her points tally, Pidgeon also had a good night defensively and was tasked once again with guarding the opponent’s best player.

“She was all over the place,” Ardrey said of the senior co-captain who came close to a triple-double, with a big night rebounding and assisting as well. 

Madison Gossi also impressed and added 13 points, while Gianna Regli chipped in eight points, as the Cats enjoyed a good night in the paint.

“I thought our bigs played well,” Ardrey added. “Maddie was solid tonight.”

Ferndale’s Michaela Ellsmore struggled to find her rhythm scoring, but the senior co-captain “had some key steals and passed the ball well,” according to her coach.

Reaching another section semifinal is a nice achievement for the team, especially after losing five of six games at one stage in January.

“Even though we had a rough January, we’re playing well right now,” Ardrey said. “On to the next round. It’s nice to have another home game.”

Mendocino closed out the season 17-11, while the Wildcats improved to 18-9.

Also on Saturday, Grace Christian Academy defeated California School for the Deaf 53-34 to advance to Wednesday’s semifinal.

The Lions, out of Santa Rosa, improved to 19-3 with the win.

They are the No. 3 seeds in the bracket.

No. 1 Cornerstone Christian will play No. 5 St. Vincent de Paul in the other semifinal.